Patrick Ness: A Monster Calls (Revisited)

I know I posted about this book a couple of years ago, but I just wanted to take a second and highlight it again. I just finished this for another time through (probably my fourth or fifth time reading it). I can't say it enough: I LOVE this book. It gets me every time I finish it (even like four times later).

I convinced my mom to read it, at a time when we're watching her parents struggling with illnesses and conditions we know aren't treatable. And it's hard. And we're so far away. And it just sucks. I hadn't even thought about them, when I suggested it, because I just wanted my mom to read it. She came back to me and told me how much she loved it. She finished it in one day, and her reaction was, "It allows you to feel however you feel about death and terminal illness. It shows that whatever you feel is ok and if you are honest with yourself you can be ok too."

And as I said in my last review: Losing loved ones is a universal experience of being humans. That is entirely part of the human experience. Probably one of the hardest parts. I still think that everyone should read this book!

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Brandon Sanderson: The Alloy of Law - Wax and Wayne (Mistborn era 2) book 1

Again, I had this book finished quite some time ago (shortly after finishing The Hero of Ages ) and I just haven't had a lot of time to get to posting my review. I am now about halfway through the next book, and now that the term is over, I'm hoping I will have a little more time to finish that book. The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson introduces Era 2 in the world of Mistborn . No longer does the world of the Final Empire exist, but it has literally been remade by Harmony, or the character of Sazed and the Hero of Ages that readers might recognize from The Hero of Ages . In this world, Waxillium Ladrian is a lawman in the Roughs. At least he was, until his uncle and sister unexpectedly died, and Wax is forced to assume control of the noble house he is now heir to. He finds the city is no less in need of a lawman than the Roughs, and is soon embroiled in the investigation into The Vanishers. Once his fiancee is kidnapped, and his butler tries to blow him up, Wax is fully in

Ruta Sepetys: I Must Betray You

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Brandon Sanderson: The Emperor's Soul

As Elantris is probably my favorite Sanderson book of all time, I was excited to see this novella that takes place in the same world. I listened to this on Audible, and it went really quickly (I think it's about 3 hours total). The Emperor's Soul follows the story of Shei, a Forger, who has been arrested for Forging a copy of a painting in the Emperor's palace. Unbeknownst to Shei, the Emperor was injured in an assassination attempt, and his mind was broken. Knowing her great skill, the bureaucrats in charge of the Empire offer her a trade: her life, for a forgery of the Emperor's soul. This feat is nearly impossible, and Shei knows this, but she accepts the chance at freedom. Will Shei actually be able to recreate the Emperor? This novella was beautifully written. I loved Shei's personality, and the conflicts she had with the Empire. I found it fascinating to learn more about her, and her attempts to thwart being manipulated. I thought her story was fascinating i

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